The Barons boys Varsity Soccer season this past year was very bittersweet. The goal for the season was to get to the CIF playoffs like many other soccer teams in California and the program will be satisfied that they were able to get into CIF even with an at-large-bid as their only route. The loss at Ventura in the first round of CIF came in sudden death overtime. This was certainly heartbreak for the squad but there are many positives to take from the season and to bring into next year.
The Barons will only lose players from last year (Steven Ryan, Christian Rodriguez, Brandon Dang), the loss is fortunately a small group although each player was integral to the roster. This minimal loss is contrasted by the huge class of freshman last year on Varsity (Bret Nomura, Isaac Garcia, Joseph Lorenger, Spencer Brose). The now sophomore class performed very well last year, Isaac Garcia received first team Sunset which is unprecedented for such a young athlete, and Joseph split the entire season in goal with the another young rising star Ryan Brown, who is now only a junior himself. Along with the relatively large freshman class was a well sized now junior class which totals to 8 players. These young Soccer players will play an integral role for the team this year and provide depth as well as great performances all season long. This year’s senior class (Wade Sias, Ethan Morrow, Toshi Kimbara, Eric Shearer, Travis Allison) will likely become the core of the team. They are players with a good amount of Varsity experience who will help guide the team through the hardships as well as the highpoints of the season and each game. New additions to last year’s team include Travis Allison playing his first year on Varsity as a senior, Oscar Garcia(11) who missed all last year after playing as a freshman and Marcello Ratinoff the lone freshman this year. Leading theses players at the helm are Jason Smith who has coached nearly 20 Fountain Valley Seasons with a career winning record and many CIF appearances and with him is David Sias as assistant and longtime assistant Peter Dang.
The Barons Varsity Team is shaping up to be a real contender for the top league spot especially with Edison, who placed first last year, but lost a majority of its starting Roster. All the elements of youth potential, as well as a solid and seasoned senior class all make the hopes for this year very bright.
There will be a lot expected from the 11-12 Barons Varsity team and they have a great shot at not only getting the top spot in the competitive Sunset league, but also going farther than they did last season in the playoffs. Please come out and support your Barons Soccer program next year they are sure to do well and a rabid fan base could be that X-factor which could put them far in the Playoffs. GO BARONS!
